Vapor Digest #3 The Trade Publication For The Vapor Products Industry
Issue link: http://vapordigest.epubxp.com/i/442928
27 Mr. Magazine TM The Theologian of Vapor: Patrick V* Butson but I didn't think it was fair for a child being brought into this world to have such an unsure future. So I felt I had to make a choice. I could go get a real job and make some money or I could continue on this path of not knowing, but feeling like I was going in the right direction. And I guess all these years later, I kind of regret that I had to make a choice and realize now that I could have done both. I could have lived a more inspiring life and meant more to more people and found a way to take care of my family like many other people have done. Yes, a lot of the reason why I'm doing this is that I regret not taking a more adventurous path and when I saw the first person vape, I just knew instantly that it was very special and had the potential to really change a lot of lives. So I began to follow that. Something that could give me that feeling again that I mattered. Samir Husni: Do you think being the theolo- gian that you are the whole idea of vaping has anything to do with your calling? Correct me if I'm wrong, but I don't think you smoked before… Patrick Butson: No, I didn't smoke. And yes, it gave me this sense of calling again and I understand that sometimes when you're looking for gold, everything you see is shiny. And if it's something you want to follow, it could be fool's gold and I might just be seeing what I want to see, but the vision and the perception I have of what vaping can become just energizes me and makes me want to do this. Samir Husni: Almost at the same time you started two magazines, one for trade and one for the lifestyle. Patrick Butson: In general, I got involved with it because I was excited. And when I started vaping I assumed there would be a magazine about it. I'm not a smoker per se, but once in a while I like a celebratory cigar and if I ever wanted to know what might be a good cigar, I'd go to Cigar Aficionado or if I wanted to know what's a good craft beer, I'd go to the craft beer ratings, but when I did that for vaping I realized how you almost have to ask two questions. Let's say that you want to try a new honey- whiskey that Jack Daniels has come out with and you read the reviews and tried to get a sense of whether you'd like the flavor; all you really have to ask yourself is would I like it or not. You never have to ask yourself if the whiskey is safe, but that's not true with the vaping landscape. It's a very Wild, Wild West out there; you don't know who you can trust, because people can make things sometimes look too good to be true. A person may have a friend who is a web designer and he could make that company look like a pharmaceuti- cal giant. So that's part of the reason why I did this too. My real intention when I started was to be more like the lifestyle magazines, but when I realized that what was needed was more of an investigative-type of magazine first, that's why I did them both. Samir Husni: Why the emphasis on being a Harvard theologian – turned visionary? Every- where I see your name that is very promi- nently written. Why? Patrick Butson: I did that because I believe it sets me a little apart, because what I do is try to focus on the vision of what it could be and let it lead me like the North Star. But as I was trying to get people to listen to me and help me, they said don't undersell or be embarrassed that you've got a theology degree and it's true, so why not say it. I guess that's part of why and it's quite a unique thing to have. And it lets people know that I'm prob - ably coming from a different angle than most. Samir Husni: What's in all of this for you? Patrick Butson: What's in it for me most importantly is that I matter. I think that if I keep saying perceptive things and keep getting them right and keep giving out the informa- tion, along with the stories that people want to read, then I think I'll have an influence. That's mainly what's in it for me. But I also realize that I need to monetize my efforts so that I can keep doing it and I've done not as well as I'd hoped, but I think I'm on my way. I have advertisers. If you have a copy, you'll see several paid advertisements. Samir Husni: What is your ultimate goal? Where do you see the magazines a year from now? Patrick Butson: My ultimate goal for Vapor Lives Magazine would be for us to be a com- bination of Rolling Stone and Cigar Aficio- nado. I want it to be that important about a new social trend like Rolling Stone was. It also gives the trustworthy ratings like Cigar Aficionado does. That would be my goal for that magazine. And it would be sold in Barnes & Noble and counters as you go through supermarkets. I'd love it to be a magazine like that and have that type of pres- ence and clarity. And I would like for the trade magazine to be the official source of the industry and the news magazine of the industry. That would be my two goals. Samir Husni: And what do you think will be the major stumbling block that might prevent those goals from happening and how will you overcome that? Vapor Digest Vapor Lives Magazine